Rangers have confirmed that they have parted company with manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
The Dutchman had been in charge of the Glasgow giants for just over a year and led the club to the Europa League final last term, agonisingly losing out to Eintracht Frankfurt on penalties. He also secured the Gers a Scottish Cup in 2021-22 and guided them to their first Champions League qualification in 12 years.
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But Rangers have failed to push on under his stewardship in 2022-23. In the Scottish Premiership Rangers sit second, nine points behind rivals Celtic. A 1-1 draw at St Mirren last time out meant Rangers have now dropped points in three of their last five league outings, following the previous weekend's loss at St Johnstone and a home draw with Livingston. And in the Champions League, the Gers failed to register a single point as they were eliminated from the group stage with the worst campaign on record.
Heavy defeats against Celtic and Champions League opponents Ajax, Liverpool and Napoli had put the 47-year-old under intense pressure and the board have now taken the decision to make a change during the World Cup break.
The club statement which announced Van Bronckhorst’s departure on Monday read: “Unfortunately, results and performances over recent months haven’t met expectations and the decision was made today by the board to terminate the contract of the manager. The search for the new manager is now underway."
Rangers chairman Douglas Park added to the statement, saying: “I want to thank Gio for the hard work he has put in over the last 12 months and, especially, the achievements of taking the club to the Europa League final and winning the Scottish Cup last season.
“Unfortunately, recent results have not met neither our nor Gio’s expectations, and we have taken this difficult decision today. Everyone at Rangers wishes Gio every success in the future.”
Van Bronckhorst becomes one of the shortest-serving permanent managers in Rangers’ history, with only Pedro Caixinha and Paul Le Guen departing sooner.
